I want you to know

http://www.mytowntutors.com/2013/04/autism-awareness-what-you-should-know/

A blog I shared on mytowntutors.com

What you should know:

I am a mom of a child diagnosed with autism.
I want you to know, no two children are alike. Children with autism see things different from you and me. My child analyzes doors when they shut. We shut a door and think nothing of it. When he shuts a door, he is zoning in on the different parts and trying to understand how it’s able to close. That is just one small example of my child’s uniqueness.
I want you to know that when we hear a car beep it may not be a big deal, but when they hear it beep it can sound extremely loud and feel like its right next to their ears. Sometimes his senses are on overload and something he hears may cause him to have a meltdown.
I want you to know that my child may not want to play with other kids and may be perfectly fine playing in his own world.
I want you to know parents are dealing with a lot. They may not be able to work, which causes financial hardship. There are not a lot of programs that support children diagnosed with autism.
I want you to know it’s not polite to stare at us when our children are in public in the middle of a meltdown.
I want you to know when our children were first diagnosed it was devastating and scary. At the beginning they are fine and hitting all the milestones and then BAM. Overnight they stop speaking. They stop showing eye contact and stop communicating with us. Just stop and imagine how devastating that is for a parent.
I want you to know that it’s okay to include my child to your child events.
I want you to know that my child may not be able to communicate with you but hear you and understand the negative things you are saying about him.
I want you to know it is not okay to talk about my child in front of your child because its rude and because your child will spread the information to the next child which causes people to whisper about me and my child.
I want you to know its okay to teach your child about autism because if you do, it will cut back on the stigma that it’s placed on my child.
Last but not least, I want you to know that even though its Autism Awareness month, in our house autism awareness takes place everyday.

Why should I sign up for Uniting Autism?????

I wish there was a way for me to put  my feelings into words.  My site is coming along and I am so excited about what’s happening.  Thinking about how many families, that will benefit from this free site makes me extremely happy.  I have a son with autism.  He is 8 years old.  I have had him for almost 3years……(I know the math does not add upJ.)

Well , his mom died of breast cancer (my aunt)and I took him in.  I cannot begin to explain what I went through when I took him in.  I had no support and felt so alone.  There were support groups but I had no way of getting a baby sitter and it was just time consuming.  One day, I said, “I wish there was a way to have an online support group”….I started making my vision into a reality.

Uniting Autism will have online support.  Not just any support but a support  group that will be moderated and have designated times for us parents to get together to talk, vent, laugh and cry about everything we go through with our kids…..And we go through so many ups and downs that other parents can’t understand.  I   #Get.It

 If this sounds like an exciting adventure, that you would like to be a part of, please email me at CelesteViciere@unitingautism.com so that I can keep you informed about the official launch date.  In the subject line please write, “Support Group”

Thanks,

Celeste Viciere, Founder

Were NOT BROKEN

Up and downs of autism. To have a child excelling and reaching milestones to all of a sudden just stop.  Could youbegin to imagine what that is like.  If you do not have an autistic child then you eould never understand.

  Watch this video. I just went from tears of sadness to tears of joy #autism #Inspiration

"@TannersDad: Days Were NOT BROKEN! 3rd Edit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmJI00cK1RU&sns=tw … "

Inspired

Inspired

When I think about autism, I ask myself why.  So many people suffer.  Children and parents go through different changes.  One thing that is hard is, acceptance.  But this week, I was able to watch a very moving video on YouTube that showed how a child with autism recovers.  She is doing amazing; I just thought I share the link.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEjzIiRbt0k&feature=colike

UnitingAutism

Taking Care of Yourself

Having a child with autism can be so hard. Everyone looks at you funny, they stare at you and judge. That is one thing that irks me. While we are trying to provide a living for our family we go home and struggle with helping our kids get through the day. One guy tweeted, “Autism is leaving work to go get your kid because he won't stop punching himself in the head” This is our reality every day. We may not know what their day will be like because anything can trigger there behavior. I told him he was an awesome dad. He said,” If by "awesome" you mean "tired, depressed, and socially isolated" then, yeah, I'm fantastic. Thanks, though.” It’s true, we go through so much and we feel isolated because our peers may not be able to relate. They do not understand our happiness when we tell them our 8 year old was able to speak a complete sentence because it’s foreign to them. Social networking has been a tremendous support for me and I continue finding awesome people that are able to get me through the day. So please parents, make sure you are taking care of yourself. Being physically available for our children is one thing. But sometimes mentally we are drained and need extra support. There are many place and websites available for you to reach out.

*Uniting Autism*

UnitingAutism.com

  

      This is my first Blog. This blog will mostly be about Autism. I am a parent in the process of starting a social website dedicated to supporting caregivers and parents of children diagnosed with autism. For the first blog, it would make sense to give a little background about myself. In March of 2010. I took in my two cousins whose mom died from breast cancer. The youngest child has diagnoses of Autism. He never received any intervention. His behaviors were all over the place. I quit my job in order to assist with the transaction. It was a very trying time. He was 5 years old, in diapers, and non verbal. He communicated through screaming, hitting, and banging and was given anything his heart desired in hopes of controlling his behavior. My husband and I put him on a strict plan where we pinpointed a behavior and gave him a reward for good behavior and punishment for bad behavior. Punishment was timeout or taking things away.     

     Today, he is 7 years old in the 2nd grade. I am happy to report he no longer screams, he is able to communicate his needs verbally and is able to read at a K2 level. He has made tremendous strides. During this process, at times I felt isolated because I did not know anyone who had a child with autism. I wanted to talk to someone to get through the difficult times. There were support groups but I was unable to attend.

     I always said to myself, “If only there was an online support system where I could talk to someone live at my house. This year I have decided to take on the dream. I have Masters in mental health counseling and worked in the field for over 10 years. I know firsthand how important it is to take care of you mentally. In order to take care of our children it is crucial we are mentally sane. I feel if parents of children with autism had live support, and were able to jump on the computer at anytime of the day to vent and have a conversation with their peer, it would make there day just a little bit easier. The free social site, (UnitingAutism.com) is currently under construction and I will continue updating you on its progress.